Voice of Russia - China has successfully developed a laser defense system that can shoot down small-scale low flying drones within a two kilometer radius in five seconds, Xinhua news reported.

The laser system with its precision, speed and low noise can shoot down drones at an altitude of 500 meters and a speed of 50 meters per second (180 kilometers per hour or 112 miles per hour), the news agency reported on Sunday evening citing a statement published by the China Academy of Engineering Physics.

Zawya - The Ministry of Labor will begin implementing the fourth stage of the wage protection system (WPS) for companies with 500 employees or more, starting next week.

The undersecretary of the Ministry of Labor for Inspection and Development of the Work Environment, Abdullah Abuthonin, said the ministry allows each company in the private sector to register in the new program before the mandatory implementation stage, giving them enough time to organize themselves.

JEDDAH - KHALIL HANWARE - Arabnews - Saudi Arabia and heavyweight Gulf oil producers are showing no sign of deliberately cutting exports to address oversupply and support prices that slipped to a four-year low below $83 a barrel last month, according to a survey. Sources in the Reuters survey said that the shutdown of the Khafji oilfield, jointly run by Saudi Arabia and Kuwait, slightly curbed Kuwaiti output but has not affected Saudi production as the Kingdom holds a vast amount of capacity in reserve.

Saudi Gazette - KUWAIT CITY - Kuwait’s ruler warned on Tuesday that declines in the oil price were damaging the economy of the Gulf state, urging lawmakers to “stop squandering resources” and to diversify revenues.

“We are witnessing a new cycle of low oil prices as a result of economic and political factors that have hit the global economy and started to negatively impact our national economy,” Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah said in a speech to open the new parliamentary term.

The IMF believes that lower oil prices could knock nearly 1 percentage point off economic growth rates in GCC countries, putting new fiscal pressure on policymakers in the region to reduce spending plans.

Salman Aldossary* - Asharq Alawsat - It is simply Saudi Arabia’s fate that it is held responsible for every little thing that occurs in the global oil markets. If prices go up or down, the finger of blame points her way. If the global economy requires a balance between the supply and demand for oil, all eyes are suddenly on Riyadh, watching intently what the world’s predominant supplier of oil will do next.